Freeman Gosden
and Charles Correll made their radio debut on January 12, 1926, as the comedic blackface characters Sam ’n’ Henry. On March 19, 1928, they introduced Amos ’n’ Andy, which went on to become
one of the most popular and longest-running programs in radio history. During
the height of its popularity, almost the entire country listened to the fifteen-minute,
Monday-through-Friday adventures of Amos and Andy. Department stores open in
the evening piped in the broadcasts so shoppers wouldn’t miss an episode; movie
theaters scheduled their features to end just prior to the start of Amos ’n’ Andy so they too could pipe it
in.

The characters
were members of the Mystic Knights of the Sea Lodge, of which George Stevens
was “the Kingfish.” Amos and Andy ran the Fresh-Air Taxi Company, with the more
stable, married Amos doing most of the work while Andy chased girls. One of the
best-remembered sequences was the time Andy almost married Madame Queen. In
1943, after 4,091 quarter-hour episodes, it switched to a half-hour weekly
comedy. While the five-a-week show often had a quiet, easygoing feeling, the
new version was a brassy Hollywood-style production, complete with studio
audience, full cast of supporting actors, and full orchestra. Many of the
half-hour programs were written by Joe Connelly and Bob Mosher, later the
writing team for Leave It to Beaver
and The Munsters. In the new version,
Amos became a minor character to the more dominant Andy and Kingfish duo. The
new Amos ’n’ Andy Show endured for
the next twelve years as one of the most popular weekly programs on radio.

Other Titles by Hollywood 360:

About the Author

Hollywood 360 is a syndicated radio show heard every Saturday evening on radio stations throughout the United States. Hollywood 360 showcases a wide variety of audio entertainment, from the golden age of Hollywood to today’s most current headlines.

About the Narrators

Freeman F. Gosden (1899–1982) was an American voice actor best known for his role as Amos
Jones in the long-running radio show Amos
’n’ Andy. He was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Radio and
was featured in Ronald L. Smith’s Who’s
Who in Comedy.

Charles J. Correll (1890–1972) was an American voice actor best known for his role as Andy
Brown on the long-running radio show Amos
’n’ Andy. He was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Radio.

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